What Am I

Based on tantric theory, prana is indeed related to sexual energy, which I guess would also make it the preform of semen as well as the female sexual-material counterpart. It also supposedly has a direct tie to one's capacity for creativity. As for what prana is exactly, I can only give an opinion based on my own experience as well as many years of reading others' reports. I'm pretty confident in saying it seems to be a standalone electromagnetic force of some kind, though perhaps qualitatively different from the mundane type we're familiar with. It's raw intelligent vitality when broken down to its finest layer, the source of which is the omnipresent nondual realm itself. It sustains life at all times, but it's directly tapped in more significant quantities during dreamless sleep and formless meditative adsorption. A 5-MeO-DMT breakthrough performs the same function as well. Like I was saying to aurum earlier, a lot of this is simply inferred by myself and mystics throughout history based on direct experience. The truth of it all is likely more complicated, and will require a proper investigation by those better equipped to discover its actual workings. The one thing that's important to understand is that prana is most certainly real, despite how difficult that may be for some to believe. Once you've experienced the requisite states of consciousness, its existence is as obvious as any other clearly perceptible aspect of your body.

Ah, I misunderstood and didn't realize your earlier comment was targeted only at the original post. I don't know who Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is, so I guess I don't really want to defend their assertions. It looks like they made some highly specific claims that could very well end up being inaccurate when put under heavy scrutiny. I think advanced meditators who directly experience the reality of spiritual energy probably perform a lot of extrapolations and come to conclusions which may not be entirely true. It's likely similar to bodybuilders who make up their own broscience. But in the absence of a better framework of understanding, it's not surprising they'd try to design one of their own. It's hard to blame them, and I can definitely relate.

lol, well it could be worse. Practically the whole forum, including yourself, could be of the opinion that we're literally a single consciousness experiencing itself in an illusion of duality. That'd be pretty weird, right, aurum? You and I have had this conversation before, and there's probably no need to completely rehash it, but it wouldn't be the worst idea for you to keep an open mind on the topic of spiritual energy. Based on the experience of many, there seems to be a reality to it that's not yet fully understood in the modern world. And I'm not talking about hippie chicks with their crystals, but rather a consequential truth that is relevant in the process of human spiritual awakening, and is likely relevant to life beyond that as well. If you've had some legit spiritual experiences that you consider to be atypical of the average person, it's not the most difficult thing to understand that there may be other mysteries beyond your 20-something years of experiencing life.

Practically everyone lives trapped in their own head, both figuratively and literally where awareness is concerned. When intellectual pursuits account for 99.9% of your existence, you're only experiencing a fraction of what you really are. A great deal of your energetic system is below the neck, including all kinds of activators and modulators of consciousness, and awareness needs to rest in an embodied state to light it all up. That would go a very long way towards maintaining a highly energetic existence.

Ah, checkmate, very sneaky.

@Joshe interesting, thanks for the added info. I'm guessing the propaganda is a lot more apparent when its ideology is of the polar opposite to your own. Strange that we've ended up in a place where right-wing propaganda is well-propagated, considering the right doesn't necessarily have their hands on that many levers of power in the West.

It's possible, but I wonder if it'd go bankrupt and shut down before it got to that point. We are still talking about a business here, and one that's privately owned.

This may unfortunately be more true than I wish it was.

Just a guess really, based on the idea that if it were to devolve into right-wing propaganda that's constantly forced on all users despite their own inclinations, anyone who's not on the right would eventually abandon it.

If this is all true, then yeah, I'm seeing some issues that I wasn't previously aware of. If nothing else, I'm more conscious now than at the beginning of this thread of the possibility that the platform isn't the free speech haven it was advertised as. It's unfortunate that the human mind itself seems to be the weakest variable in all these equations. Maybe we're too weak to live up to our ideals.

Like was mentioned earlier, it'd basically become another version of Truth Social. I'm guessing its reach would minimize and the userbase would shrink so as to become inconsequential, unless we're suggesting the left would hang around and continue tweeting despite extreme unfair treatment. But I don't know, we're dealing with some seriously difficult questions to which I definitely don't have the answers. And I'm probably speaking out of school since I'm not fully informed in some of these areas. If you were to ask what I really think might be a solution, it'd be that all humans should become aware of and work towards spiritual enlightenment so as to perceive their intuitive felt oneness at all times. I believe that as long as we're all functioning like broken machines, chaos is inevitable.

That could be the case, and if so, I do retract my statements.

It certainly doesn't help Musk's case, and it works against his stated goal of neutrality. But there's levels and nuance to these things. His self-tweet promotion pushes the platform away from the ideal, but I wouldn't consider it the gravest of sins that puts it in-line with a propaganda machine ala China and Russia.

But do we have anything beyond the owner of the platform having his own tweets amplified? I'll readily admit that it tips the scales inappropriately, especially considering the typical content of his tweets. But that alone is simply not enough for the severity of claims being made. We're putting quite a lot of weight into the idea of being forced to briefly view Elon Musk's tweets as you scroll through the application. Perhaps I can be convinced that the human mind is too malleable and must be spared Musk's personal opinions, but I'd be much more concerned if we had something akin to major left-leaning figures being shadow banned or outright banned entirely. Something that creates a true echo chamber, where only one side's propaganda is allowed. I'm just not seeing it, but maybe I'm not looking at it in the right way.

It's possible. It'd be nice if we had some tangible evidence besides anecdote though. I think it's very easy for a mob to get whipped into a frenzy and then be prone to exaggeration as they metaphorically burn their target in effigy. I've always found that part of human nature annoying.

I must have missed when he made that announcement.

Well shoot lol. Sorry to hear it. If this is indeed true and not just conspiratorial thinking, then he really did go against his original mission statement.

Well I'm more so asking the question. Is that really the case? Do we have evidence now that X is working in the background towards Musk's own desired ends? I've been out of the loop, but didn't he make part of the underlying algorithm open-source?

Isn't there a distinction to be made between Elon Musk currently being heavily biased to the right and the platform itself being designed in a manner to where it's similarly biased? Musk may be speaking out as an individual, but does that really suggest the underlying code of X is non-neutral?

For sure, I agree with this as being a much more effective strategy. The vast majority of people would pick up a tool like 5-MeO-DMT and have no idea what to do with it, and indeed wouldn't even understand what it's capable of. There's a pretty decent chance of it causing more harm than good. I'd already been aware of real spirituality for 17 years when I finally got my hands on it, during which time I'd had minor/moderate success in spiritual endeavors. So I feel like I was ready when the time finally came to take advantage of the gifts it provides.

I'm aware of both and have tried a few practices, but I've found that 5-MeO-DMT has performed the role of energetic enlivening and purification like nothing else I've ever experienced. If your consciousness is primed, this stuff can straight up activate kundalini and blow away entire portions of stuck identity that were previously lodged as stale energy. It's like it permanently leaves you with less of yourself and more of the raw awareness of reality. Beyond psychedelic use, I do make an effort to continuously embody myself energetically. I find that I'm a dud at using the breath for any spiritual practice whatsoever, and I've been better off trying to use my attention directly while leaving my breath alone.

You're right, I guess that is the typical flow of teaching for meditative practice. At least in Buddhism, where you're usually advised to develop samatha to a certain degree first. But for whatever reason, that can be more difficult for some, and better success can be found coming at it from a different angle. I'd include myself in that group. You're certainly in for quite a treat if you get your hands on 5-MeO-DMT and use it responsibly and in a targeted manner towards spiritual advancement. For someone like you who seems aware of the various signposts of meditation, it's an amazing thing to see the ultra-high levels actually materialize and present themselves in your direct experience. It's like a temporary ride to the top of the mountain, with a compressed tour of the terrain along the way. It can be easier to return to a place you've already been.

I'm not sure if it's strictly necessary. Teachers like Adyashanti and Ken Wilber attempt pointing-out instructions that bypass the technique phase and move right to "awareness being aware of awareness", to get into the Goldilocks zone of effective awakening. Whether all students are capable of that without prior effort is a good question though. As a side note, a psychedelic like 5-MeO-DMT is the perfect companion to this sort of practice. In a typical state of unconsciousness, it can be very difficult for awareness to break free and actively perceive itself. But using 5-MeO-DMT, once you've seen where you're supposed to be aiming, it becomes much more accessible, even when you're sober.

I suppose this particular statement is probably technically accurate. It's just sad though, because a much more useful understanding would be something like "Anyone who enters the state of consciousness commonly called nirvikalpa samadhi (by whatever means) will be inclined towards a sophisticated comprehension of solipsism, due to their direct experience of dissolving into a superconscious everything/nothing/forever identity." It's worth expanding one's horizons beyond a base-level understanding of something so innate and profound. This is a potential that all humans have. And yet, it's practically become vestigial, with most people being unaware of what they're missing. I get that your university professor and favorite youtube channels likely don't ever bring up the topic, but maybe it's worth another look before assuming you've got a perfect handle on how things really are.